B.C. files constitutional challenge of Alberta’s fuel restriction law

Alberta has declined to sign an official communique from the western premiers meeting in Yellowknife over the lack of support for the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion plans.

Asked about the comments, Notley fired back on Wednesday.

The most ridiculous irony came Tuesday when B.C.'s NDP government filed a constitutional lawsuit against Alberta for passing its own bill to restrict the flow of oil and gas to B.C.

The bitter dispute over the expansion of the Trans Mountain crude oil pipeline between British Columbia and Alberta took another legal turn for the worse on Tuesday after B.C. The company blamed "the uncertainty created by B.C." and the Horgan government's "opposition to the project".

Next day, Alberta energy minister Margaret McCuaig-Boyd expanded on the threat on the floor of the Alberta legislature.

Both Manitoba and Saskatchewan have supported the pipeline project against British Columbia's objections, but Mr. Pallister said the western provinces need to focus on obstacles to free trade - both global and interprovincial.

The nonsense runs even deeper because B.C. has mounted a separate legal query to the Federal Court asking if the province is allowed to control the amount of unrefined oil flowing through pipelines in B.C. So in one courtroom, lawyers will argue that B.C. should have the right to set limits on the flow of oil while in another courtroom, lawyers representing the same client (the Province of British Columbia) will argue that Alberta doesn't have the right to set limits on the flow of oil.

"The private shareholders he's describing happen to be part of a company that will contribute ... roughly $15 billion to the Canadian economy and will contribute to and support over 250,000 jobs in the country of Canada, so it is a ridiculously naive statement", she said. "The other is gasoline or jet fuel to be used by citizens to move around freely", he said.

The B.C. government has filed a reference case in the provincial Court of Appeal to determine if it has jurisdiction to regulate heavy oil shipments.

From the NDP election platform: "The Kinder Morgan pipeline is not in B.C.'s interest ..."

Horgan, on a conference call Wednesday with B.C. reporters after the meeting, admitted things have gotten frosty on a personal level with Notley, someone he considers a friend. "We will use every tool in our tool box to stop the project from going ahead".

Hoffman says her government cares about consensus on national Pharmacare and other key issues including infrastructure funding, but right now, nothing's more important than the pipeline.